Teresu obu Buusagi!
by SoldierSteak
Summary: Discontinued. Sorry, little population of fans.
1. Prologue

First off, I apologize that it's been so long since I wrote something else. Second, I apologize for the horror I am about to indulge you with. An idea that no one else has ever done before (to my knowledge, at least).

This was spawned from a comical conversation about out-of-left-field pairings in Abyss on the official Tales forums. Beever, if you're reading this, lookie 'ere at how I did it! God_damn_ am I good at keeping promises. At the expense of forgetting others, but that's not what's important.

What _is_ important is that you _read_ this clever little story and _review_. I mean, jeez people, it's not like you're _buying_ these stories; you get them all for free. It's my freakin' payment! KTHXBI READ NAOW.

(PS: The title is simply "Tales of Rappig" in Japanese. Dammit if I don't keep up my retarded habit of using foreign titles!)

**Disclaimer:****Tales of the Abyss and its characters are owned by Tales Studio "Team Symphonia". Ah, don't hear that company often, do ya? NAMCO KEEPS THEM IN THE DUNGEON! IT'S TRUE, I HAVE CLEARLY-NONDOCTORED PHOTOS!**

"..." - Quotes.

(Italics)...(/italics) – Thought.

* * *

**Teresu Obu Buusagi!**

The brown-spotted beast solemnly stood on its specialized throne, a jeweled masterpiece with an abnormal amount of detail carved into its golden-laced length, specifically designed to house the anatomically-alternate behind of the hybrid animal.

The rappig, a very rare male specimin of the species due to the proud red tint on his pale, pink skin, had a look of sorrow planted on its squinted face, seemingly drowned in its own melancholy. The creature took one quick look around the glorious room with what little movement his neck allowed, and sighed. At least the rappig equivalent of a sigh, which was a quick disgruntled snort. Other than the intricate make-up covering his face like the black as night eyeliner and the blushed cheek polish, the creature also wore a golden collar with the human letters "L-U-K-E" carved into its surface. He responded to that name, so he knew it to be his.

Servants docked in blue work clothes surrounded him on all sides, rubbing cloths across his body, dabbing wet pieces of soft tissue in his ears, dashing his eyelids with some type of painting brush, and doing all other sorts of things that others would find unbelievable. Let alone all of the people giving the rappig attention; the throne itself would've been enough. A delicate piece of fragile beauty, it had been crafted from the very products of heavy mining deep within' the mountain range near Grand Chokmah, by the hands of the most skilled workmen from Sheridan. So exquisite in its design that it put the actual throne of the Kimlasca-Lanvaldear kingdom to shame.

Even the rappig understood that a creature like him receiving this kind of attention was not only abnormal, but also quite different than what his normal brethren were used to. Sometimes, it surprised even _him _about how far his owner went to make sure he was in a state of constant bliss for every waking second of every day.

Perhaps the only one that received more flatter and praise than him was Jade, his slightly pudgy kin from the same litter. The other rappig was five years Luke's senior, but even after taking that into consideration, he was quite the obese piglet, towering over nearly all other rappig litters in the Palace in both height and bulk. Occasionally, he would even be allowed to sit atop the throne on the enigmatic leader of the entire nation's lap. Emperor Peony, Luke's owner.

The quiet rappig didn't exactly understand _why_ Jade received more attention in the first place. Sure, most rappigs were only meant to serve as either cuddly pets or food, and rarely did their simple lives require any more physical labor than next-to-nothing, but even Luke took sporadic walks around the city with the Emperor's maids, and more recently the Emperor's close associate, a quiet, pleasant man with golden-light hair stylized on his scalp. Jade, however, did absolutely _nothing_, for every second of every day. His activities merely consisted of laying near the window where the most sunlight was streaming from, sometimes getting up and moving as the sun did. When a servant would attach a leash to his collar, he would instantly plop down on the tiled floorings, refusing to get up and get some fresh exercise. He was perhaps the most boring, lazy animal Luke had ever known.

In all rappig honesty, he really didn't care whether or not someone else got more attention than him. That wasn't what was dragging on in his mind, although sometimes he wished it was that simple.

There was another rappig from a different litter than him, a fudge-colored female hog. He wasn't completely sure _why_, but he _did _liked being with her whenever the chance arose for as long as possible. He'd try to budge in between the maids' feet in order to be with the walking group she was in, even if he had been tired out by a previous one. He'd stick next to her side throughout the entire walk, and ignored the snorts from the other rappigs behind them.

Unfortunately, those days had left and gone, and didn't look like they were coming back any time soon.

How was he suppose to know that was her favorite silver bow?...

--------

"... To the capital, it'll be twelve-thousand gald apiece," the coachman hoisted up the water canteen in the nook of his hip and looked at the two travelers, one of them suddenly forming a frustrated grimace, "You got enough on you?"

He took a good look at the people infront of him. There were two travelers, and while it wasn't rare to see adventurers group in pairs, these two both had outfits that looked far from ideal for traveling across rough terrain. One of them, the young woman, wore an official Order uniform, which he noted looked more ceremonial than operational, and the boy looked like a punk dressed in everyday summer clothes.

This certainly would be a much more interesting day than he first thought this morning.

The brunette crossed her arms, "That's expensive..."

"Really? Sounds cheap to me."

The woman's redheaded companion spoke up in an arrogant tone. Almost immediately upon hearing him, the coachman felt an inner hope that he wouldn't have to be with them one moment longer than needed. The boy spoke up again, twirling his hand about in the air, "My dad'll take care of it when we get to the capital."

The boy knew it wouldn't be that easy getting home the instant he saw the frown form on the man's face. The older workman sighed, "That's no good. I need payment in advance."

He heard the sound of something being shuffled, and turned his gaze back over to the woman. No sooner had he twisted his head when she held an outstretched hand, holding a beautiful pendent with a purple gem embedded in its crest.

She looked troubled for handing it out, but spoke nonetheless, "... Take this."

Wait... She was handing this out to him? Just like that? Sure, the coachman would admit the twelve-thousand was a bit greedy on his part, but this fine piece of jewelry would _more_ than make up for his price. He reluctantly grasped it from her hand, holding it up to his face and turning it in the palm of his hand to inspect its edges and shiny surface, still not completely sure that she would give away something this spectacular, "... Wow, this is some gem!"

He slowly stuck it in the napsack tied around his belt, making sure not to scruff up its value. Turning around back to his cart, he swooped his arm towards the two, "Alright, hop aboard."

The redhead also seemed to be surprised, going bug-eyed at her jewel offer, "Huh..." he grinned and placed a hand on his hip, "You got some nice stuff. Now I don't have to get my shoes all dirty."

The girl stood silent; her taciturn expression said it all.

* * *

**-Author's Notes-**  
I believe this'll be my first story on that isn't a one-shot. It won't be that long, probably within' 5000-10,000 words, but I hope you all have fun reading it nonetheless.

This is also my first time writing in the general perspective of a non-human. If you specialize with these types of characters, then feel free to criticize my style and give me a few pointers in your review. : ) You can just tell me my style sucks, and I'll be happy that you took the time to say that. No, seriousely, that's how much I adore other people's opinions.

Thanks to this story's existance goes to the following Official Tales Forum members: Beever, for giving me the idea in the first place (Even if it wasn't her original intention : P ), and ladynadiad, who wrote down a good portion of the Abyss script, because lord knows _I_ wouldn't take the time to replay the game up to that point.


	2. Rushing Hurts

Talk about embarrassment. It turns out that Beever is, in fact, a guy, not a gal. Sorry Beev, for, ya know, embarrassing you in front of the entire online community and all...

BACK TO THE STORY.

**Disclaimer:** Tales of the Abyss and its characters are owned by Tales Studio ""Team Symphonia". Hell, I don't even own the damn rappigs. : (

* * *

**Rushing Hurts**

"How's my sweet, precious little Luke?..."

The elegant man stuck his face right in front of the tired rappig's nozzle, placing a tiny kiss on his wet nose and ruffling up the tiny area underneath his elongated ears. Emperor Peony was well-tanned, well-built, and well-grown, but even the strongest concentration of male testosterone would quickly dissipate whenever the man was in presence of a sweet, little animal. Rappigs included. Rappigs _especially_.

He inspected how his servants did with freshening up one of his favorite rappigs, completely engaged with his work, "Hm... No scruffs here... The makeup's pretty even on each side.. Oh, I like what you did with the eyeliner!... Well, this part needs some--"

The rappig had the sense to tune out whatever else his owner had to say, although he did notice said master's mouth moving for quite a long while, pointing out spots and ideas for Luke's looks. Finding no reason to be awake, the hog gently closed his thick eyelids.

He wasn't sure how much time had passed, but when he reopened his vision, the room was empty and he was finally left to his own.

Getting on his hind legs, he slowly raised his behind off of the throne, and with one foot over the other, he stepped off orderly.

He had been on that chair for so long that he wasn't sure if his legs could work anymore, they felt almost like the slop he slurped up daily. After taking a few contemplative steps forward to make sure they weren't completely dysfunctional, he scampered out of the room at as safe a pace as his stocky little legs could handle. The door out of his room to the foyer was on a wall perpendicular to the large, blue-tinted glass window that took up the entire enclosure in front of his throne, showing a beautiful view of northern Grand Chokmah. It was another perk that Luke wasn't all-too-sure he deserved, seeing as how he was physically unable to lower or raise his neck to fully enjoy the vista.

Unlike a human's neck, a rappig's was tightly knotted with its body, creating much more resistance to the joints that moved the organ around. It hurt simply trying to turn his gaze around, but he could handle doing it scarcely.

Once out of the room, he crawled around the upper deck of the palace, since his room was on the second floor and he _detested_ walking down stairs; his tiny legs couldn't take the length of each step. He just wanted to be out of his spacious room, as it was simply too luxurious for his tiny animal senses; he'd rather be stuck tightly between the flab of his kin any day.

For once in a long, long while, he felt content in his pampered life since... That incident with the other rappig.

Until his floppy ears caught the commotion down below.

"Ooh!... R-really Emperor?!"

The shrill voice penetrated his sensitive ear drum, causing his entire body to vibrate with a shudder. It felt like a cat's claw scraping _layers_ and _layers_ of glass. If he had arms, he'd cover his ears in an instant. Unfortunately, the most he could accomplish was lowering his ears down so that they flopped around the top of his head.

Poking his head through the railings that lined the edge of the second floor's foyer deck, he lowered his neck and dealt with the pain, highly interested with the humans that were engaged in a conversation downstairs in the entrance plaza.

The first person he noticed was, of course, his master. Apparently, the Emperor was discussing something with his best friend, an older man with long brown hair and aged glasses that covered his strange, crimson eyes. Luke had seen this man before. Several times, in fact, but none in person, and from what the stories his fellow kin told him, he should hope the man's meetings would be as long and as far apart as possible, if he knew what was good with him.

At first it appeared as though the emperor was only talking to the man, but the rappig squinted his eyes and noticed two other things; a mother rappig in a usual mother's den filled with straw and piglets, and a young human girl.

"Of course, Miss Tatlin," Emperor Peony smiled as he looked down at the girl, showing his pearly-white teeth in portrayal with his dark skin tone, "You're like a daughter to Jade, so that makes me feel like an uncle! This is the least I can do."

It wasn't the first time the Emperor offered one or two rappigs from one of his many privately-owned litters, but the mother was a fine-looking, healthy pink hog, and Luke was mildly surprised that his master would offer something so precious. At least, he _guessed_ that was the case, seeing as how the fonic language wasn't his first.

The little girl tilted her head to the side, a small form of shock on her tiny face, "M-me? Kid of this _monster_?... What on earth could make you think _that_?!" The girl grabbed the hem of her Order Uniform shirt and did a slight curtsy, "Does this look like the sweet little girl of the _Necromancer_?"

"Indeed, Emperor..." the man fiddled with his glasses, "I'd like to believe that when I _do_ have a child, I'd be able to tell whether it was my son or daughter."

The emperor chuckled, a pleasant noise to Luke, as the young girl, 'Miss Tatlin', looked disgruntled by the man's reply; she started to angrily beat his leg with her fist, enraged by his comment, "That was mean, Colonel! You only _wish_ you could have someone as beautiful as me as your own flesh and blood!"

"Now now, Anise. So rough, so soon? You don't want to look like a tomboy in front of one of the most wealthiest men in the world," he looked down directly beneath him, and their eyes were locked with each other for a split-second in a battle of dominance, until the girl gave up and lat go of his leg. Taking a few steps back, she crossed her arms.

"Hmph..." the girl looked as though she was thinking about something, her head slightly tilted in the air. As if she had just hatched a plan, the pig-tailed girl uncrossed her arms and ran to Luke's master, now wrapping her arms around _his_ leg, "Your Majesty... Could you give my precious Colonel Curtiss an extended vacation?"

Her face darkened, as if she had turned inexplicably _evil_, "Like.. In the dungeon? Down below? Chains and whips included?"

The emperor made the same smile that his friend could do, albeit slightly more pleasant and not nearly as threatening, "Miss Tatlin, you know he's just trying to get under your skin," the man turned his head to see the other man looking around innocently, as if he had no idea what point they were making, "... As much as I would _love_ to throw him in the dungeon."

The girl waved her hand around, "Whatever," she took a few steps toward the mother and her rappigs' den, who all had simply sat through the entire scene, "Now then... Which one can I name?"

The emperor walked up behind her, "Just pick one!... I'd normally let you keep it, but I believe the Order doesn't allow pets in the sanctuary barracks..."

The girl, once again, crossed her arms and snorted, "Hmph, don't remind me. Ion's doing his best to revoke that stupid rule, but it's taking time..."

The spectacled male took up her side, "There's a good reason for that mandate. I believe it came into effect during Fon Master Evenos' father's era..." he pushed his glasses up to the ridge of his nose, "Apparently, the man had a dog who decided to relieve itself on top of the First Monument of Yulia."

He then pointed towards the young litter, "Now imagine _those _things running all over the church, griming up the place and tracking feet-shaped dirt everywhere they go."

"Ah, Jade's just angry because his brother sneezed in his face," the emperor laughed as he smacked the back of the man named Jade's back.

"That _thing_ is _not_ my brother."

"Of course not," the royal aristocrat replied, "It's _much_ too cute to be apart of _your_ family."

His friend sighed, "Oh... Why _do_ you like these nasty little--"

The loudest, highest, most tone-deafening squeal ever to be heard of by Auldrant sounded throughout the room, bouncing off the walls and dancing around the insides of the foyer's occupants' ears. The humans downstairs grasped their ears in pain; the little girl even fell to her knees.

Luke, alarmed by the sudden noise, frantically tried to pull his head out from between the railings, only to have the bars painfully push against the sides of his neck and his body stumble forward back into the spot he had been in. Even the rappig knew that he was stuck.

"What was _that?!_" the girl instinctively scanned the room, and quickly noticed the brown-haired man had seemingly materialized a spear out of nowhere.

"Relax, guys.." His Highness gave a hearty laugh. Luke saw him turn to the mother's litter, "It's just this little thing."

It was hard enough to see them from where he was, but now the rappig had to squint _even harder_ in order to see what his master was looking at.

There was a tiny, pink-colored ball with tiny ears and feet sticking out of its condensed shape, standing away from the rest of the litter with its tail long and thin. The little thing looked troubled; its mother's underbelly was fully occupied by several other rappiglets, all getting their share in the meal.

The baby rappig comically attempted to fit itself in between the tightly-pressed flesh of its larger siblings, but would simply bounce away like a trampoline on their fat. Luke felt a pang of sadness for the child.

"Oh, the poor thing..." his master spoke softly, gently taking the infant in his arms, "It's probably hungry."

The other man quietly stepped up to the rappiglet, leaning down so that he was eye level with the creature, "I believe that this one is the runt of the pack."

"A runt?..." Anise sadly regarded the tiny monster, placing her hands on her cheeks, "Oh, you aren't going to _kill_ him, are you, Emperor?..."

Once again, his master laughed, "Most farmers would, but I believe in no such thing. If every human, no matter how minuscule, serves a purpose in the world, why not a rappig?"

"Indeed," the older man stood back up to his full height and placed his hands in his pockets, "Even runts serve a purpose in a family. Much like Anise."

The girl, who Luke guessed was Anise, glared at the man, "H-hey! Just wait until I get older! You'll _wish_ you were younger!"

"Actually, Miss Tatlin..." his blonde master scanned the pink-tinted swine in his arms, "... This little thing _does_ appear somewhat in your likeness..."

The pink-dressed Anise crossed her arms in mock shame, her eyes closed and her head turned upward in the air, "Boo! I don't have to stay here and deal with the immature ramblings of two old men!"

The adults both chuckled at her behavior. His Majesty kindly asked, "Well then, take a look for yourself!" He straightened his hands forward, offering the tiny hog in both hands.

The girl opened one eye and looked at the infant, "... Fine. It does look kinda' cute..." She gently picked it up by its armpits and tried to secure it in her arms with as much delicacy as a thirteen year old girl could muster. Anise took a good look at its tiny form, "... Actually, this thing looks more like Ion to me."

The tiny rappig squealed again, although this time it was much more softer and quiet, seemingly happy at the attention it was now receiving. The girl spoke up again, "... It even has that silly, 'out-of-it' look in its eye."

"There's a few things wrong with that analysis, young Fon Master Guardian..." the emperor leaned closer to the creature, "This one's a girl, and its skin is pink, not green. I still think it's a little version of you."

"I personally think it's a mixture of both," Jade frowned as he pushed his glasses up to the ridge of his nose, "All the bad traits, anyway."

"Boo..." the young human never took her gaze off the tiny monster in her arms, cooing at it like a mother, ".. Now I _really_ wish I could have this thing as a pet!... Stupid holy rules..."

The tall necromancer hunched his shoulders, sighing, "Would your parents even let you keep it?"

The girl looked in the air, "Hm... My mom'll probably enjoy keeping it around for company, but Papa may accidentally give it away as a donation..."

She grimaced, "... Or eat it..."

"Well, Cantor Anise Tatlin..." the emperor reached out and gently took the rappig from Anise, cuddling it between his arms, "I promise I'll hold onto little Anise for you until you can bring her home back to Daath."

"L-Little Anise?!..." the human version studdered.

"Don't plump her up too much, Your Majesty. I personally believe little Anise gets her cute appeal from her short runt stature," Jade smiled.

"H-Hey! He said _I _would get to name one, not you!"

The emperor looked at the young girl with a face of sorrow, "Oh... But Miss Tatlin, look how little Anise reacts to her name!" he grinned and tickled the creature's belly, forming two consecutive light snorts.

"S-Stop calling her that! I don't want a rappig named after me!" Anise stomped the ground with her foot in anger.

The old brunette instantly questioned her words, "... But Ion would?"

She stopped fuming, but still clenched her tiny fists, "I didn't say I would name it Ion!..." she crossed her arms in immature rage, frowning, "... Besides, calling it little Anise makes me feel like big, fat Anise..."

"Fine then," Jade began to tickle little Anise's belly, though Luke doubted he enjoyed it other than enraging the human Anise, "We'll call it cute Anise, then."

"Grr!..." exhausted and tired by the constant comebacks, Anise emphasized her fatigue by dramatically collapsing against the staircase wall, wiping her brow of imaginary sweat, "Phew... Now I know how Luke must've felt whenever we ganged up on him..."

Upon the unintelligible words that flowed from the female's mouth, Luke caught his name, and his long ears peaked in curiosity. He noticed his master's face instantly brighten up, as well.

"Oh, have you two seen my rappig Luke, yet?" he happily asked, almost squealing.

Jade suddenly frowned, placing a hand against his forehead, "Oh no... Please, Your Majesty, I've heard enough stories about it..."

"Heard enough stories about what? I wanna know, Your Majesty!" Anise giggled in glee, "Did you name a rappig after Luke?"

The emperor sighed, "Well... His original, anyway. I've had the good animal for quite a long time... Although from what Guy tells me, I would rather have named him after the Luke I actually met," he turned back to face them, "How is the poor child doing, anyway? I heard he publically announced that he was a replica..."

"We all splat up at the Absorption Gate. I haven't heard from any of the others since then," Anise rubbed her left temple with a finger, "I sent him a letter, but he never replied..."

"Knowing your letters, he's probably fled in hiding," Jade gave a cocky smile, once again enraging the young Guardian. She quickly got a hold of herself, though, and turned back to the emperor.

"So... Where is he? Is he half as cute as the _real_ Luke?" the pink-cladded maiden clasped her hands together and looked around in wonderment."

The emperor began to yawn, stretching his arms high above his head, "Well, I'd say he's..." he stopped mid-breath, "... Right above us."

When he saw all three look straight at him, Luke suddenly gave a tight squeal in surprise since they now knew he was there. He tried to pull himself out of the railings, but was only met with the same result as last time: a pained neck.

"... I do believe he's stuck," the human Jade tilted his head in tiny surprise, straightening his glasses with one hand.

"About as smart as Luke..." Anise smiled, "Still cute, though!"

He couldn't turn his head enough to see, but Luke heard his master's footsteps beat on the stair steps one by one, "Hold on, you poor thing. I'll get you out."

"Your Majesty, are you sure you don't want to get one of your servants to get him unstuck? He may bite..."

"Don't be ridiculous, Jade," the Malkuth leader's arms had already managed to wrap themselves around Luke's decently-large frame, "he knows better than that."

His master leaned towards his long ears, quietly speaking, "Okay Luke, we're gonna pull you right outta' here. It's gonna hurt, but just be forceful, alright?"

The emperor got a good foothold on the pearl tiling of his second floor, gripping the belly of his rappig. Luke tried to get as much traction as his little feet could, although it was a little difficult due to the hoofs beneath them.

His master began counting, pulsating each number with a slight tug, and on three, both man and beast pulled their hardest. With a 'plop', Luke felt his neck free from the uncomfortable metal rails, snorting in relief.

"Aw!... Good boy, good boy!" his master ruffled the spot in between his floppy ears, and the red-tinted rappig enjoyed the affection.

"... Is this what happens to men when they get older?..." Anise scratched her head in confusion.

Jade merely placed his hands in his pockets, "... Let us hope not."

The emperor gave a big hug to the monster, whispering into its ear once more, "Looks like we're gonna have a small addition to the family. _You_ like the name 'Little Anise', don't you?"

Many words of the human language beyond simple commands would usually fly right over Luke's head, but he shared a bond with his master that was almost... Spiritual. He caught on enough words from his master's mouth to understand his point.

... That point, however, filled his heart with grief. There were some things even worse than what he did to Tear's bow, and the mere memory of one of those things caused his heart to drop deep into the trenches of his own self-pity.

He couldn't believe it was only a year since then. Back then, there was another runt of a newly-received litter. Unfortunately, many of the servants noticed it being pushed around by its bigger brothers. Hoping to give it a few pointers in surviving amongst its brethren, Emperor Peony 'charged' his second-favorite rappig to help be a big brother of sorts to the little creature, placing the two with each other as much as possible.

Luke, however, wanted nothing to do with it, as the young rappig was much too quiet and physically affectionate for his personal – his _old_ – liking. It clung to his leg far too much and never gave Luke time for himself.

All of the others forgave him, even the brown rappig before she was angry with him for the bow incident, when Luke decided to hurry his entire walking troupe home. He couldn't believe that he had wanted his master's attention so much that he would go to those lengths which could've ended in disaster.

Luke forced the little hog to run as fast as it could, and even the other, bigger rappigs had a tough time keeping up with him. The emperor was giving them a large feast that night, and the prideful Luke decided that that would be a good night to eat.

It was quite scary when the tiny piglet suddenly collapsed on the white-tiled sidewalk halfway to the castle. A maid had scooped it up hastily and ran to the mansion as fast as she could. With a few healing artes in the right places, all the rappig needed was a good rest and it was good as new... As good as a runt could be, anyway.

Even still, Luke couldn't forgive himself for his former behavior... His kin stuck up for him, snorting that he couldn't have known the poor thing's heart was smaller than most normal rappigs.

Ever since then, however, Luke had a horrid feeling that he could never look at children in a mature matter; only as small nuisances, and that thought only pushed him more into his own sorrow.

--------

Usually, walking through Deo Pass would be a much more pleasant experience, what with its soft winds, interesting sights, and beautiful land formations formed along the dusty road.

Unfortunately, not a single person in the fairly-large group of diverse persona could take the time to enjoy the trail's allurement, largely in part to their obnoxious redheaded leader's constant vouches to hurry onward towards the town of Akzeriuth. Hurrying at such a pace was taking a toll on his partners, especially one young man.

None of that, however, made itself noticeable in the teenager's agenda, "Man, at this rate, we'll never catch up to Master Van..." he grumbled with his arms crossed, "We shouldn't have wasted time in the desert."

"What do you _mean_ 'wasted time'?" the young, pig-tailed soldier of Lorelei begrudgingly stared at the back of her 'beloved's' head, already beginning to reach back for her beloved tone doll.

Said beloved turned around, an angry sneer plastered over his face, "I mean wasted time. We don't _need_ Ion anymore," he gave an arrogant grin, "The war won't start as long as _I'm_ around."

The girl's jaw nearly fell out of its socket, but she was able to keep it tucked in. Using only a few words, she simply responded, "You _moron_."

"H-hey!" the man backed up a bit, surprised at who he once thought held him in high regard refer to him as such.

The other lady of the group, dressed in a religious dark and red uniform and long brunette hair, stepped up as well, "Luke, even I thought that was arrogant."

Next to her stood the princess of Kimlasca, frowning at her betrothal's rude comment, "This peace is based on the respect the Malkuth Emperor and Father have for the Fon Master," she looked at the conversation peace, embarrassed yet seemingly happy with her opinion of him, "Without Ion, there would be no mediator."

Fon Master Ion did, however, believe that she slightly overblew his position, and he had to disagree with her, "No, it's not that either country holds respect for me. They merely want Yulia's Score." He sadly looked down at the dirt next to his feet, "I'm not really needed."

He felt a gloved hand rest on his shoulder, and a soft masculine voice reassured him, "I can't agree with you there. You carry weight as a deterrent, Ion. Even if you do owe it to Yulia's Score." Ion smiled at Guy, the ever happy-go-lucky servant of Luke's.

The Necromancer of Malkuth took this time to step forward and add to the conversation as well, "I see. You're all still young. So how about we get going, now?"

... _That _came out of nowhere. "... How does he pull out a line like that at a time like this? You can never tell what that guy's thinking..." Guy scratched the back of his head. He looked forward and saw Luke start to march off again with Jade in tow. He sighed, his shoulders drooping, _but Luke... You do need to be more careful with your words..._

A few minutes passed since that discussion, and only two or three blocks away from where they started was Luke once again disappointed by the lack of energy forwarded by his teammates. He gave an especial look of disgusted pity at Ion, who was so exhausted that he had to lean against his legs, panting.

Anise noticed his abrupt halt, "Ion!"

"Are you alright? Do you want to rest a bit?" Tear went to his side, holding her arms near his own in case he suddenly collapsed. _Honestly_... She wouldn't let her highest liege fall just because of Luke's impatient attitude.

Ion, however, merely shook their aid off, "No... I'm fine."

In the end, though, his Fon Master Guardian would have none of it, "No, you have to rest!" Anise circled her head to address the rest of her group, "We're taking a break, everyone!"

Luke nearly collapsed,himself. How could Anise try to offend his authority? If they simply pushed themselves, they'd be able to get to Master Van quicker and save Akzeriuth! The aristocrat turned around, a scorn look over his face, "A break? What are you talking about?! Master Van's gone on ahead!"

Natalia also seemed to have had enough with his malignant attitude. She knew about his and Van's plan to escape to Daath once the Akzeriuth crisis was averted, but how could he be this anxious just to get there sooner? "Luke! There's no harm in resting a little!" she reprimanded him.

"Yeah. This is a tough mountain path..." Guy heaved his shoulders, shrugging, "There's nothing we can do."

_Agh!... What's wrong with these people?... Why can't Ion stop being so damn useless and actually push himself?!... _Luke indignantly stomped his foot, creating a nice little dust cloud as he glared down at all of his 'friends', "_I'm_ the ambassador! If I say we go, we go!"

Silence followed. Luke half-expected some berating comment from Tear or Jade, but nothing came. All of them had blank stares on their faces, shocked at their leader's senseless behavior.

Surprisingly, it was Anise to object his thoughtless saying. She was even starting to have second thoughts about her future plans with this so-called Duke. "L-listen, you!" she spat out, ready to tear him a new hole.

Jade quickly interjected, hoping to prevent an impending argument, "Let's get some rest, Ion. I trust that's all right with you?"

"Hey!" Luke growled. _They're making decisions about me _again

Ion lowered his head, ashamed for slowing the entire group down and delaying their arrival to Akzeriuth for an extended period of time, "I'm sorry to be a burden, Luke..." He glanced at the redheaded boy sorrowfully.

Realizing that his word meant nothing now, Luke reluctantly gave up, "...Tch. Fine..." He silently skittered away from the group. "... Just for a little," he quickly added.

He still felt upset and guilty, but Ion smiled nonetheless, happy that he hadn't upset Luke completely. He nodded his head at Luke's retreating back, "Thank you."

Once again, his reunion with Master Van was postponed once more. Luke swiftly kicked the dirt in anger, but none of his teammates bothered to take notice of his seemingly incessant rambling.

* * *

**End Notes:**  
Ah, that was quite a long read. Don't expect me to keep the rest of the chapters at this length, though. It's just simply too much fun to stop writing anything between Jade and Anise. : )

Again, reviews are welcomed, but that's kind of an obvious for writers, huh?


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